Sherry definitelyChampagne - yes I can see thatLambrusco (the real stuff with a cork in it)in the wider non-geeky world I'd add German white wine (i.e. confusing fine rieslings with sugar water aka Muller-Thurgau)Merlot-based wines fast going the same way (thanks Sideways!)

In the latter 3 cases it's very much down to plonk being released that confuses the punters, steering them away from the better wines of the genre. For Champagne that can also be true, but also a recognition that all some champagnes need is some cellar time to gain complexity. Sherry also suffers from cheap sweetened dull sherry (e.g. modern-day Harvey's Bristol Cream), but good sherry can be had for very little money - a good fino is peanuts (and might even be a decent match for them ). Finally good Lambrusco on it's own is a bit harsh/simple, but match it with cured meats and other suitable antipasti, and it all becomes clear. It's one of the great examples that can show why wine/food matching is important.

Finally another one to ponder - Italian white wines. Fairly tarred with the 'neutral food wines' brush for many years, there really is some great white wine coming out now, but is that widely known?

I can think of quite a few ones in regards to champagne (only because I'm closest to that wine)...

Rose Champagnes are sweet (This was the origin behind posting this topic)

Champagne in general is sweet (although it can be of course).

Champagne is really just a "social-gathering drink" but not a drink for food of any kind.

Champagne is "meant" to be frothy and consumed young (this is of course just personal preference but I will always take the nutty/caramel tones that aging imparts).

In fairness, there is also the misunderstood flip side - all aged champagne is good and is not as enjoyable if you drink it young.

Champagne is just a "white wine with bubbles" made from white grapes.

Champagne must be drunk out of a flute (I break this rule all the time using a Chardonnay glass)...

Dom Perignon is the be all end all of champagne (I actually DO love Dom Perignon and it's one of my favorite champagnes. But there is surely a wealth of other great champagnes that can take your breath away at a fraction of the cost).

Only big champagne houses can make great champagne (I'm guilty myself of tasting mostly house champagnes, but I do realize that the greatness of the wine isn't exclusive to the houses).

And probably some more I'm forgetting....

Jeff

"Meeting Franklin Roosevelt was like opening your first bottle of champagne. Knowing him was like drinking it." - Winston Churchill

But along those lines, I will say that off-dry wine in general is misunderstood by the casual wine drinker who exclaims 'this is dessert wine!' merely because they detect the slightest bit of residual sugar.

Tom Troiano wrote:Not sure if this is fair or what you're interested in but lots of geeks that I know (including me) tend to avoid Beaujolais and I suspect part of this is bias and part is misunderstanding.

I think I have to agree with Tom that Beaujolais may be the most misunderstood. In the case of Sherry, I would say that it is a case of confusion more than misunderstanding because of the diversity of styles. With Beaujolais however, there isn't even confusion becuase the vast majority of wine drinkers are not aware that the Crus even exist. So I would say that Beaujolais is even less understood, because a majority of wine drinkers probably think that there isn't anymore to understand than Nouveau and inexpensive, picnic-style reds.

"The sun, with all those planets revolving about it and dependent on it, can still ripen a bunch of grapes as if it had nothing else to do"Galileo Galilei

(avatar: me next to the WIYN 3.5 meter telescope at Kitt Peak National Observatory)